cleaning/refinishing Streamer S1

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jif

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Hi, first post here.

I own a 1991 Streamer Stage 1. I don't have a camera but it is exactly the same type and finish as the one shown in this link...



The bad news, for me, is that mine doesn't look anything like as clean or fresh as that one. There are no dings or scratches on it but it is very dirty. I've never waxed it and as a result the wax finish is pretty uneven. In short, the finish looks like a patchwork of nice wax, no wax and dirt.

I have ordered some wax and want to give the bass a good seeing to but I want to get the wood looking as evenly coloured as possible before applying new wax. I've been digging about on this forum for a few days and have seen many threads on the subject but I'm still a bit confused, so I have a couple of questions:

1) Cleaning the wood: What's the best way to do this? Should I use Lemon Oil over the whole body and neck? Is Lemon Oil a cleaning fluid? I suppose what I really want to do is remove all the original wax (and dirt) and get the bass back to the bare wood. Would Lemon Oil do this or am I going to need to sand the bass. If Lemon Oil is good for this can anyone recommend a brand?

2) How much darker is Lemon Oil likely to make the wood?

3) What order should I do the work in? Lemon Oil first and sand second, or sand first and Lemon Oil second? If applying Lemon Oil should I rub it in heavily and wait a day or so, or should I remove it almost immediately?

Thanks.
 
Hey Jif, welcome to the forum. I recently had the same dilemma with my new dirty infinity. I had some serious grime worked into the light wood.



Without seeing your bass, I’m assuming you have a natural finish, correct? Otherwise the following should not apply.

The key to cleaning my bass was scotchbrite pads. The scotchbrite pads will lightly sand your bass removing any build up of wax or grime. I wouldn’t worry about any oils unless you want to give the bass a more finished look. See here for a good explanation of oils and their finishing effects. Lemon oil is not covered in this explanation but from what I have heard lemon oil can be used to give the wood a vintage yellow finish. I ultimately decided not to go for the lemon oil. If you were to oil, the stages would be sand, oil, wax.



As far as using the scotchbrite pads, just take your time. Sand lightly and carefully (check your progress under good light). I ended up lightly sanding the entire body and neck for consistency. If you want to do a good thorough job, I would remove the pickups, bridge and control knobs. When you have removed the layers of grime and wax, your bass should feel consistently smooth and look very unfinished and bland. That’s where the wax comes in. I applied a few coats of Warwick beeswax, and WOW stunning results! Let me know how things turn out.
 
Thanks for the advice, Hallbatross. I was a bit worried about using Lemon Oil so it's nice to know I don't really need it. I'll use Scotchbrite and wax. I might give some 0000 steel wool a try too. Any thoughts about steel wool?

BTW, your Infinity looks lovely. If my bass ends up looking half as nice I'll be happy.

Cheers
 
The scotchbrite should be abrasive enough. If the scotchbrite does the job, I would aviod the steel wool. The steel wool may leave behind metal fragments that may cause issues. I think you will be quite surprised what the scotchbrite and wax can do. Good luck.
 
Good point about the fragments, I certainly don't want those in my electrics.

The wax is on it's way, along with a set of EMP strings, so with any luck I should have it all done and dusted by next week. I'll let you know how it goes.

Thanks again for the help, Hallbatross.

EDIT: I don't have a digital camera, so I can't post any photos. But I'll post a full description of how it goes.
 
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